Healing
by Constance Truggle
Summary: After being resurrected, Buffy needs some time away from the Hellmouth. Day Twenty of August Fic-A-Day


**Title:** Healing

**Author:** Constance Truggle

**Fandom:** Buffy/Fast and the Furious

**Rating:** FR13

**Pairing:** None

**Summary:** After being resurrected, Buffy needs some time away from the Hellmouth.

**Disclaimer:** Don't own Buffy or The Fast and the Furious.

**Word Count:** 2384

**Author's Note:** So I'm on a _The Fast and the Furious_ kick lately. It's all **_hellbells_**' fault, anyway. Well, mostly. But I've decided to do a couple fics that show different ways Buffy could be introduced to Dom's world. This is the first of those. There are at least two, perhaps three in this series. Sorry to keep shoving this fandom on you, but I can't seem to write in anything else right now. ^.^

Post _Once More With Feeling_. Veers horribly off canon from there. For TF&TF, it's just after the Supra is complete, and Dom and Brian are at Neptune's Net after kicking the Ferarri's ass.

_**Wow! I uploaded the wrong document as this story. Sorry for those who've already read this. It's fixed now! **_

* * *

When Sweet came to town, the singing and dancing was weird, but okay. Then the combusting began, and it was just creepy and with a rather gag-worthy stench. Then the deepest, darkest secrets starting coming out. Anya and Xander got rocky. Giles felt both unnecessary and like Buffy was too dependent on him. Willow's use of memory charms on Tara came to light. Dawn's klepto tendencies were more apparent. But worst of all was finding out that not only had they _not_ saved their friend from a hell dimension, but she now felt like _this_ was hell. That they'd miscalculated so badly was horrific. Willow berated herself over it and denied that she would have done it regardless, and that's why she hadn't bothered to find out where her best friend was. Xander berated Willow over it and denied that he even thought that Buffy might be somewhere other than a hell dimension. Anya thought Buffy got a raw deal, but didn't really care one way or the other. Tara felt it most keenly, though. She should have double checked, she though. She should have known that a Champion of the Powers would go straight to Heaven. She berated herself for not making sure that Willow knew exactly where Buffy was. And now, their friend was hurting and they didn't know how to help. Well, most of them didn't. Dawn and Giles, however, thought they might.

Giles called the Council and requested that they either get some seasoned demon hunters out on the 'Mouth for a while, or they get Faith released from prison. He explained exactly what had happened since the previous May, and even Travers wasn't cold enough to think pulling someone from Heaven was a small matter, no matter his feelings towards Miss Summers. He couldn't, he said, in good conscience have the rogue slayer released. Not unless she was desperately needed. However, he knew a couple of young men who would be able to handle the Hellmouth for a few months, providing Buffy with some time to come to grips with her situation without putting undue pressure on her. Travers, in an uncharacteristically kindhearted gesture, had some ten thousand dollars transferred to the girl so she could travel for her healing, but also to keep her house paid up. Well, Giles figured he'd take care of her household issues and gave her all of the money. He felt she was owed it after all she'd been through.

Dawn, having spoken with Giles, had done the only thing she could think of. She called her half-brother.

* * *

Brian and Dom were discussing Race Wars when Brian's cell went off. After seeing the number, he gestured at Dom and half turned away from him to answer.

"Yeah."

He listened intently and, at one point, growled. Dom blinked at the man. That was not a sound he'd ever thought would come from the blond.

"Yeah, alright. When?" Dom watched Brian get tenser and tenser as he listened to whoever was on the other end of the call. All Dom could hear was random muffled speech, enough to tell it was a girl and that was it.

"Uh, yeah. We're at Neptune's Net right now. Where is he?" Now Dom was _very_ curious. What the hell was going on?

"No, that's fine. We'll be here." Dom raised an eyebrow in Brian's direction but was completely ignored. It was a novel feeling for him, and one he didn't much care for.

"Alright. Love you too. Later." Dom nearly bit his tongue in half waiting for Brian to hang up.

"Who was that?" he asked.

Brian was very distracted, and that showed. "My sister."

"You have a sister, Bri?"

Shit, Brian thought. Nothing for it now. "Yeah. Two."

"What'd she want, Brian?"

"She, uh.. She wanted to tell me our other sister is on her way here and should be _here_ in about fifteen minutes. A friend of theirs is driving her down."

This was seriously like pulling teeth, and Dom had never fancied himself a dentist. "Brian," he drew the name out into two syllables. "You gonna tell me what's going on?"

"Can't," the blond said. When Dom just gave him that _Look_, he shrugged. "Really, man. Dawn didn't say much, just that Buffy needed some serious help, and could I take care of her for a while?"

Dom was trying to get over the fact that Brian Earl Spilner had a sister named _Buffy_, of all things, when Brian stiffened.

"Shit," he breathed, and Dom had to turn around to see what caught his attention. There was a dark haired man coming in the door, steering a blonde woman right towards them.

"Brian?" the man asked when he reached them. At Brian's nod – though Dom noticed he never took his eyes of the girl – the man smiled. "I'm Xander, of the Buffy Delivery Service." The girl flashed a faint smile at her friend, then looked up at them. Dom almost recoiled from her eyes; they were full of pain and misery and grief. Yeah, this girl _definitely_ needed help.

"Buff, I _have_ to get back, or the crew will stop working or otherwise screw something up. You gonna be okay?"

She looked at Brian, then at Dom, then back at Brian. "Is it okay, Bri?"

"Yeah, Buff. Anything for you." She smiled again, this one looking more real than that sorry excuse she gave Xander and the guy turned to leave.

"Call me when you're ready to come home, okay? Or if you just need to talk. Just ignore Anya."

Buffy's smile got a little wider. "Yeah, Heaven forbid I call during orgasm time." Buffy's smile fell, so did Xander's. Dom was getting more curious by the minute. _Something_ was going on here. Some subtext that was going over his head. By the look on Brian's face, it was over his, too.

Buffy sat next to Brian and watched her friend leave. As soon as his car was gone, she slumped down. It was only then that Dom realized the Supra didn't have a backseat. How the hell were they going to get this girl back to... shit. Brian was staying at Harry's. Where the hell was his sister going to _stay_?

"Bri, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we've got some logistical problems here," Dom said, causing both blond's to look at him, eyebrows arched in identical looks of confusion. Yeah, they were _definitely_ related. "The car's only got two seats, and you're staying in Harry's backroom."

"_Shit_," was Brian's reply.

Buffy looked at her brother for a moment before his job came back to her. He was a cop. Obviously his friend didn't know this if he didn't know Brian had an apartment in Lawndale. Shit was right. Back before she died, Brian had told her that his sergeant was looking at him for undercover work. She'd told him then that she didn't think he was cut out for it. He got too attached; too emotionally invested in the people around him. She wasn't sure he'd hold up well when his first case had to end, and it seemed she was right. At least about the attachment. These two were _friends_. Not pretend friends, like a real undercover guy should have, but _real_, honest to goodness, care about each other friends. This wouldn't end well, and she didn't want to see the fallout.

"Look, Bri, you don't have to take care of me. I can go to Angel's place, or even get a hotel. Maybe just go back to Sunnydale," she offered. Brian recalled her talking about Angel. First, how he was perfect in every way. Most recently it was how he told her to stay out of _his_ town and some memory mojo that he didn't understand.

"No way, Buffy. I won't leave you with him," Brian was strangely emphatic about that, to Dom's mind. Buffy just rolled her eyes.

With a wryly amused smile, she said, "I can handle Angel, Brian."

"Yeah, maybe. But can you heal there?"

Buffy narrowed her eyes at him. "What did Dawn tell you? You know what, nevermind. Introduce me to your friend."

Brian seemed to just realize they'd been ignoring Dom. "Shit, sorry bro. Dom, this is Buffy. Buffy, Dom."

Buffy held out her hand. "Buffy Summers, Dumbass' sister."

Dom took her smaller hand with a grin. He had a feeling he was gonna like this girl. "Dominic Toretto, Dumbass' friend."

Buffy huffed a laugh, and was surprised to feel humor welling up inside. She could get to like this guy.

"So where's your bag, Buffy?" Brian asked, changing the subject from bonding over his dumbassery to something safe. Except it wasn't so much the safety he was looking for as it was a death knell.

"Oh, yeah. Umm... we didn't bring anything? So, you know, you have to take me shopping."

"No."

"Oh yes. Unless you want me borrowing your clothes, which, can I say? Totally not my style. Not really _any_ style, actually. Your friend here has more fashion sense than you do. Obviously my fashion genes came from my mom and not Dad."

Brian rolled his eyes good naturedly at her ribbing, but had a distinct look of panic and caged animal about him. Perhaps a panicky caged animal? Dom decided to try to help they guy out.

"My sister can go with you," he offered. She pouted at him, and he was nearly lost. This girl had a nuclear-grade pout.

"But I was so looking forward to torturing Brian and turning him into a pack mule!"

Dom's lips twitched and he very carefully did _not_ look at Brian. He knew he'd start laughing if he did. "Look, let me call Mia and see if she's even free to take you, alright? If she's not, you can have your pack mule here." Dom gave her a appraising look that got Brian's hackles rising. For no reason, it turned out. "You're one of those marathon shoppers, aren't you."

Buffy gave him a blinding smile. "Yup! That's me! Of course, if your sister did go with me, then at least I could ask for an opinion that would mean something..." Buffy trailed off, and Brian grinned. It seemed she was feeling a little better already at just the thought of her retail therapy. Dawn didn't tell him much, but he knew enough to know that his sister was in a bad place just then and any _real_ smile was a step in the right direction.

Dawn had told him that Buffy'd been fooling them all, mostly. There were day's when she couldn't hide it, but they had written it off as not quite being used to being back, whatever that meant. So he had some digging to do to make sure his favorite sibling would be alright.

Dom called Mia and she was free. Definitely free to help out Brian's sister. The one nobody knew he had until just then. She said she'd even drive up to get the girl so they wouldn't have to all try to fit in the Supra, but Dom said he'd drive and she could just share with her brother. She was small enough. But could Mia please be ready to go since they were leaving the diner now?

* * *

Buffy liked Mia almost as much as she liked Dom. She had the same steel core that was apparent in Dom, and made her laugh telling stories about Brian. But she was a bit too innocent for Buffy right then. She was still good people, though, and when she offered a guest room in the Toretto house that night, Buffy accepted. She'd been told about Brian's room at Harry's shop, and shuddered. She really thought about going to the Hyperion and making Angel take her in, but Brian was right. She wouldn't heal there. He would mother her and smother her and make her feel like she was made of glass. These Torettos, though, seemed content to treat her just like they would anyone else. Just like they treated Brian.

When they got back from the mall, night had fallen and she and Mia both had their hands full of bags. Bags they dumped on Brian as soon as he stepped out to meet them. Dom laughed until Mia dropped the last of her bags into his lap and told him that Buffy had another bunch of bags in the car that he was going to get and take up to the guest room. Buffy would be staying with them for a while. Brian looked concerned, but he knew he couldn't have her at Harry's, and she couldn't go to his apartment. But what about her calling? Was she going to be going out slaying while she was there? Because he was sure that at least Dom would catch her, if not Mia too. Well, he'd have to see. Maybe he'd take her driving the next day and find out what was going on.

Buffy liked Leon and Letty right away. Leon was a sweetheart, and Letty really reminded her of Faith. She'd have to get Brian to take her to visit Faith while she was here. Vince was a dick to her brother, but as she watched him interact with everyone else, she realized it was _only_ Brian that he was like that with. He was gentle with her; apparently Dom or Brian had told them she was having a hard time with something and they were treating her accordingly. It was pissing her off. But she felt that, like the humor, anger was a good thing. It meant she _could_ feel, she just wasn't. Jesse was kinda like Willow when she first met her, but crossed with Oz. It was a good mix, but the kid was kinda spazzy, too. He was the nicest of the bunch, though. Something almost childlike in his naïvete.

She stood on the porch late that evening and thought yeah, she could heal here.


End file.
